


Corps-à-corps

by 96jeu



Series: Salut des armes [1]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst, Break Up, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Jeon Wonwoo-centric, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Why We Broke Up, why we broke up!au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-01
Updated: 2018-05-01
Packaged: 2019-04-30 18:02:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,351
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14502525
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/96jeu/pseuds/96jeu
Summary: intersecting lines will meet at one point, then never again.-why we broke up!meanie





	1. foreword

This is the box, Mingyu.  
Inside is everyhing. 

 

Two beer cans,

a movie ticket from Pride and Prejudice,

an origami,

a thimble,

your green sweater,

a candid photograph of you,

a notebook of pressed wildflowers,

a book keychain,

a young adult novel,

an Attack on Pearl Harbor postcard,

a chess piece

and the rest of it.

 

This is it, Mingyu.  
The whole story of why we broke up.


	2. the box

Dear Mingyu,

"To get the full value of a joy you must have somebody to divide it with." I wrote that quote from Mark Twain on the lid. I chose it because you will never be that somebody. 

The box I purchased from the bookstore, which also houses several school and office supplies, is red. 

Red is your favorite color. 

But you wouldn't like what's inside the box.

 

I asked Soonyoung this morning if he could help me send the box to you. 

"Hello?"  
"Soonyoung, it's me."  
"Yes I know, silly."  
"I just called to ask if I could—"  
"Borrow my car? Sure. What for?"

A handful of seconds have passed until the answer came out from my mouth.

"I'm going to send the box today."  
"Oh. Yeah, sure. I'll be there in ten minutes."  
"No. You don't have to come with me just to see if I'm going to send it. I will really give it to him."  
"I just wanted to give you a ride, that's all." He laughed.   
"Oh, thank you." I said then hung up. 

Soonyoung was right. He arrived after ten minutes. This guy is honest with his words, unlike you. 

"To get the full value of a joy you must have somebody to divide it with." I recited as I climbed inside Soonyoung's car. 

"Let me guess, Oscar Wilde?" Soonyoung asked. 

"No. Mark Twain, it is."  
"I'm sorry. I'm not a literature major." He said as he put his hands up, as if I was arresting him. 

In the first place, I should not be really writing nor giving this to you; for you to know that I no longer care about you, that those once cherished memories are being buried deep into the ocean. But I guess I need to give an explanation as to why I ended it in just a snap of thoughts. 

"Writing while riding in a moving car is bad for your eyes."  
"I already know that, Soonyoung. You don't have to scold me everytime I read or write in your car."

Soonyoung scoffed. 

"Are you ready?" He asked.   
"Of course."  
"Of course, what?"  
"I'm not."  
"Good."  
"What's good about it?" I slapped his shoulder.   
"Nothing." He said and let out a muffled laugh. 

The ride to your house is three hours, so it gave me enough time to jot down every reason. Every item in the box holds a painful memory. A memory that burdened my shoulders. I'm giving this so you could also experience the weight of carrying it. When you receive this, I hope it takes all the emotional pain that this relationship had caused away from me.

Mingyu, you're no longer here to witness the way I adjust my glasses as I write this all down, and that's why we broke up.


	3. two beer cans

These are the beer cans that you and I drank in Soonyoung's front porch that night. There were no stars present, leaving the moon alone with its thoughts. I was wearing Soonyoung's windbreaker that I always borrow whenever I spend time at his house, and you in that green sweater. The windbreaker was hugging his chair when I went up with him to his bedroom, the only source of light is the lamp placed on his desk.

“It's clean,” Soonyoung said, then looked up at me.   
“Yeah, I know,” I replied as I wore the windbreaker.

I fished out the gift inside my backpack and gave it to him.

“Who said I wanted a present?” Soonyoung asked.   
“You.”  
“When did I say that?”  
“Yesterday, when you were busy getting drunk while talking to me on the phone.”  
“Oh.” 

He pulled the lid and touched the bubble wrap, torn between popping it or not.

“I went back in time and stole it from Shakespeare's jewelry box,” I said.   
“Wonwoo.”  
“I got it in a vintage store. I know you're going to like it.”

A smile started to form on his lips when he saw what was inside the small box. He held the hoop earrings like it was his life. The hoop earrings were painted in black when I surprisingly saw it in the vintage store just a few blocks away from my apartment.

“Wonwoo.”  
“Soonyoung.”  
“Wonwoo,” he said then hugged me.   
“Thank you. Every gift from you is the best,” he confessed.   
“I'm lactose intolerant,” I darted back.

I patted and drew circles on his back to assure him that whatever he was thankful for, it's nothing. He sighed as he unwrapped me from his hug.

“With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come,” I said.   
“William Shakespeare?”  
“How did you know?”  
“It's just a wild guess. Your way of greeting me is peculiar. Don't worry, I'm used to it,” said Soonyoung

I laughed.

“Bitter sixteen, Soonyoung,” I said then gave him a reassuring smile. 

Soonyoung gave back the smile with his teeth and puffy cheeks.

“We should go downstairs,” he suggested.   
“You should invite your girlfriend and introduce her to me, and everyone.”  
“What?”  
“I said your girlfriend.”  
“I don't have a girlfriend, Wonwoo.”  
“Who were you talking about last night then?”

Silence engulfed us as he searched for words to answer the question.

“No one. You're my best friend, Wonwoo, and you’d be the first one to know if ever I have one.”

I laughed then slapped his shoulder, my ears tinted with rose.

Downstairs the sound of the stereo was drowning the entire house. Soonyoung's arm started to get untangled from mine when a bunch of his blockmates greeted him. I was left alone and decided to fetch myself a space on the couch in their living room. Soonyoung majors in Criminology. He said it was his dream to become a detective, all because of watching episodes of Detective Conan every morning, and I fed my brain with Edgar Allan Poe short stories when we were younger. Not that I was not interested in what he was watching before, which came from Soonyoung, I was just not into anime during my childhood.

It was past 10 p.m. when we decided to eat the bitter cake that we prepared earlier to match with his party. We added no sugar to the mix, it was the worst cake I have ever tasted.

And that's when you walked into the house and my whole life uninvited.

You were wearing your green sweater. You looked tall, your strong arms hanging on your friend's shoulder, your hair brushed upward. Gorgeous. Exceptional. Tall, I said. Were you always that confident?

You must always do that at a party, Mingyu, nodding at everyone like you know them. I felt like a nomad, people must've seen you everywhere every day, but not me. I'd always hear your name in corridors like you own it, and still, I had no idea who you were until that special night.

“Mingyu!” someone shouted.

You and your friends went in the direction of the voice and stayed there, talking about something that made you laugh.

After that, I decided to come out of the kitchen and find Soonyoung to give him a cake, only leaving me unsuccessful as I was given a view of him chatting with a girl who takes the same Theories class with me. I went to their kitchen and grabbed myself an alcohol to wring me from my thoughts. The alcohol was too bitter that I almost spat it out. It was my first time to drink, and it’s not a good idea to drink in a party especially when you have no idea who you are with. But I was in Soonyoung’s house so I felt safe.

I stepped onto the front porch and sat down on the oak chair, still accompanied by the alcohol between my hands. And that's when a bunch of people went outside of the house and my ears started to hurt from their voices. You were one of them, Mingyu. Your friends stumbled as they walk down the stairs. I was taken aback when you grabbed a chair and sat beside me. 

“I lost,” you said as you clanked your beer to mine. 

I gulped.

“Hey, I'm talking to you. Don't be like that,” you pouted.  
“Are you always like this?” I asked.  
“Like what?”  
“Confident.”  
“Maybe. I lost, so the answer is no,” you shook your head.  
“Lost?” I asked.

I had no idea what you were talking about that night. I thought it was just some silly game you played with your friends, but then, whatever it was, it sounded serious.

“You do not know?” You were perplexed.  
“I have no idea since you didn't even bother to explain,” I said, irritated.

You must have sensed the atmosphere I was emitting so you gave in.

“I play fencing,” you finally said.  
“Interesting.”  
“You don't sound like you mean it.”  
“Very good. As a literature major, I have no passion for sports,” I took a swig from my drink.

You carefully played with the beer can between your hands and gulped the entire drink in one go.

“You're different,” you said then looked at me.  
“I’m different in what way?”  
“You're not like the others.”  
“Was that supposed to be an insult?”  
“No, it's true. Besides, you're cute.”

I deadpanned looked above where there was no single sight of stars, silently wishing that the night will turn colder because my cheeks were starting to get tinted with rose and my stomach is getting showered with cherry blossoms.

You asked me my name. I told you it was Wonwoo, Jeon Wonwoo. And no, you can't call me Won because it sounded like I won the lottery or some games played by teenagers. No one must ever call me that. 

You said your name was Mingyu, which I already knew. I asked you how you lost.

“Please don't,” you begged.  
“But you were the one who opened the topic.”  
“It's just my way getting you to talk to me,” you said. “I no longer have a feeling, and if I tell you how I lost, I will be drained.”

I no longer have a feeling. I liked that, Mingyu.

“But I still have one, or two,” you said and reached for my can then took a sip. It was unpleasant of you, Mingyu, but I didn't mind that time because I did not intend to finish it.

“Could I call—”  
“Mingyu!” Someone yelled from one of the cars in front of the house.  
“What were you saying?” I asked.  
“Could I call you?” You started to shout as a bunch of college students, probably Soonyoung's acquaintances, pulled the front door open and went out.

I gave you my number and stood up from the chair. I bid my goodbye to you and you did the same, still sitting and took a large swig from the can. Before I could reach for the doorknob, you carefully tugged at my windbreaker and gave me the two beer cans like we went on a treasure hunt earlier.

Why did I do that, Mingyu? Why did I let you take my number? And how could you do that? Who were you to do that?

It was not my birthday, but you were the best gift I've ever had.

“Was that Kim Mingyu?” Jihoon asked, with a plastic bag in his hands.  
“Yes.”  
“That's crazy. A guy like Kim Mingyu was here? Who invited him?”  
“Why are you talking like that? Is it the answer to the documentary of one of the world's theories that you recently watched?” I asked, reaching for my bag on the sofa near the window.

“And was he asking for your number?”

I opened my backpack and quickly placed the beer cans inside. 

“Kim Mingyu is asking you out? Mingyu asked you out?”  
“No,” I said. “He was just asking for my number, that's all.”

I was thinking of a large hole in the sand to bury the fact that you just technically asked me out.

“Jihoon—”  
“Wonwoo just got asked out by Kim Mingyu,” Jihoon called out.

Junhui stepped out from the kitchen. “What?”

“Kim Mingyu asked Wonwoo out earlier,” Jihoon pointed at me.  
“I already told you, he didn't ask me out.” I defended.  
“Come on,” Junhui said. “Don't put yourself down. You have all of the qualities Kim Mingyu looks for in millions of people. You have two heads.”  
“Maybe he snacks on area codes at midnight,” said Jihoon.  
“You also have the same components a star contains,” Junhui added.  
“We just talked. It was a party. Kim Mingyu was here. It’s over, and now we’re cleaning up.” I exhaled.  
“Then come help me,” said Soonyoung, and held up the shaker.

Soonyoung handed me the shaker and the towel to dry it.

“Kim Mingyu?”   
“Yes,” I said. My heart was silently drumming a peculiar beat.  
“Do you think he’s going to call?”  
“I have no idea. He’s Kim Mingyu.”  
“Do you want him to?”  
“I don’t know. Maybe he’s not going to call.”  
“What do you mean you don’t know?”

I was thinking of a submarine that time, wishing I could operate it and hide from the Homo sapiens.

It was a good thing I thought of something to block his sudden outburst. “Happy Birthday, Soonyoung.”

Soonyoung just gave me a small smile. I gave it back. I gave it back, the party was over and the two beer cans slept in the warmth of my backpack. Take these back, Mingyu. Here they are. Take back the words we shared. Take it all back, because Mingyu, you did not even bother to say a small greeting to my best friend and you thought I was different, and that’s why we broke up.


End file.
